Hate & Bias Crime

The Edmonton Police Service Hate Crime Unit advocates for human rights, safety, security and inclusiveness for all identifiable communities in Edmonton. The Hate Crime Unit is committed to sustainable partnerships with our communities to build trust, prevent hate crimes and incidents from occurring and foster an atmosphere of mutual respect in our City.

What is a Hate Crime?

A Hate Crime is an offence committed against a person or property, which is motivated, in whole or in part, by the suspect’s hate, bias or prejudice towards an identifiable group based on, real or perceived, race, national or ethnic origin, language, colour, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation or any other similar factor.

Examples of hate crimes include:

Violence, threats of violence,

Acts of mischief or vandalism

Distribution of hate literature, hate mail,

Threatening phone calls, and/or

Destruction of religious property or symbols.

If one of these criminal acts occurs, and the investigating officer feels it is motivated by hatred, the file could be classified as a hate crime.

What are hate incidents?

It is important to note that not all incidents of hate are criminal in nature. However, the impact on the individual or community is similar. For a variety of reasons, it is important to report these occurrences to police.